Quarterly estimated taxes

What It Means

Quarterly estimated taxes are payments of income tax and self-employment taxSelf-employment taxThe Social Security and Medicare tax self-employed people pay on their own profit: 15.3% of 92.35% of net earnings, owed once those reach $400 a year. See more made to the IRS during the year, on income that has no tax withheld from it, such as freelanceFreelancingWorking for yourself, selling your skills to different clients by the project or the hour instead of holding a long-term job with one employer. See more or business profit. For 2026 the IRS splits them across four due dates, using Form 1040-ES to work out the amounts. You're generally required to pay them when you expect to owe at least $1,000 after withholding and refundable credits, unless your withholding already reaches the safe harbor amount.

How People Say It at Work

• "My quarterly taxes are due on the fifteenth."
• "Did you send the IRS your September payment?"
• "I just pay 100% of last year's tax in four chunks."

The Breakdown

2026 due dates, per IRS Form 1040-ES

You can skip the January 15, 2027 payment if you file your 2026 return by February 1, 2027 and pay the whole balance with it.

The safe harbor formula. To meet Form 1040-ES, your withholding plus estimated payments need to reach the smaller of:

• 90% of the tax you expect for 2026, or
• 100% of the tax on your 2025 return, raised to 110% if your 2025 adjusted gross incomeGross incomeThe full amount you earn before taxes and other deductions come out. For federal taxes, it's all income you receive unless a law exempts it. See more was over $150,000 ($75,000 if married filing separately).

Worked example. Marco freelances full time with no withholding. He expects $12,000 of total tax for 2026, and his 2025 return showed $1010,000 stepsA popular daily step goal that began as the name of a 1960s Japanese pedometer; later studies find health benefits begin well below it. See more,000. 90% of $12,000 is $10,800, and 100% of last year is $10,000, so the smaller target is $10,000. Four equal payments of $2,500 meet it. He'd still owe the last $2,000 when he files, and that's expected under the rule.

What the result means. The safe harbor is the minimum to pay during the year; any tax above it is paid when you file your return.

Good to Know

The 110% rule for higher earners doesn't apply if at least two-thirds of your 2025 gross income came from farming or fishing, according to Form 1040-ES. Everything above is for 2026; the IRS publishes a new Form 1040-ES each year, and the 2027 version wasn't out on October 1, 2026, so check its dates and rules before your first 2027 payment. Publication 505 explains estimated tax in full. If your income swings a lot during the year, or this is your first year self-employed, ask a tax professional how to size the payments.

Related Terms and Categories

• Self-employment tax

  The Social Security and Medicare tax self-employed people pay on their own profit: 15.3% of 92.35% of net earnings, owed once those reach $400 a year.

• 1099 contractor

  An independent contractor whose pay a business reports on Form 1099-NEC; they're self-employed, so no tax is withheld and they owe self-employment tax.

• Freelancing

  Working for yourself, selling your skills to different clients by the project or the hour instead of holding a long-term job with one employer.

• Gig work

  Short-term, on-demand jobs or sales, often found through an app or website, such as rides, deliveries, errands or selling goods; the IRS treats the pay as taxable income.

• Irregular income budgeting

  Planning spending and saving when your pay changes from month to month, such as freelance, commission or seasonal income, around your lean and average months.

• Side hustle

  Paid work done alongside a main job or other commitments, such as freelancing, delivery driving or selling goods; the IRS treats the income as taxable.

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